She pointed to the left, and I hesitated—we’d need to backtrack toward the tavern. But we weren’t even halfway to Col’s townhouse, so all I could do was hope her home was closer. Wishing I had a white stag to impart its courage, I drew in a breath and moved down the street while Edith continued to provide directions.
Witches and fae rained down from the sky, landing on the buildings and the graveled land. With the number of bodies falling to their death, the likelihood of Col being one of them increased exponentially.
“Now where?” My voice cracked as I panted. Edith sent a finger out, and I found Sky lying on her back with a witch looming over her.
“Traitor!” the onyx-eyed witch shouted and followed the insult up with a thick wad of spit to my friend’s face.
Sky had her sword sideways while trying to fend off the blackened staff. On the opposite end of the globe, the wood was formed into a sharp point; and the woman was attempting to lodge it into her intended victim; my friend.
My vision darted; I needed to find somewhere safe. “I need you to hide in here.” I pulled off the lid of a large metal trash can. “It’ll only be for a couple of minutes. I’ll be back.” Kneeling, I faced Edith head-on and pushed back several strands of hair that clung to her wet cheeks. “I promise you.”
Her lips shook, and tears streamed from her eyes. “I don’t wanna.”
There was no time to come up with a better choice, so I picked up the girl and stuck her inside. Her cries echoed against the metal.
“Shhh.” I grabbed her hand and placed it over her lips to muffle the sobs. “Two minutes. That’s all.”
Still crying, Edith nodded and sunk deep into the cylinder filled with trash.
“You’re so brave.” I placed a gentle kiss on the top of her head.
Just beyond Sky, a second witch landed. The woman’s gaze focused on her comrade and my friend. The woman’s red cape dragged against the ground as she stalked toward the battle.
I looked around for anything I could summon with my magic. But aside from measly vines and bushes in a few pots, I had nothing. Nothing but the lid still gripped in my hand. I sprinted.
Sky’s onyx pools flashed to me just as I smashed the lid into the skull of her opponent. The woman lost her footing and fell back, right as the other witch bolted toward us. I turned just as Sky impaled her sword into the eye of the one who laid on the street.
“Didn’t I tell you to get to the house?” Sky’s words were curt, but unmarked by anger.
“You can thank me later,” I whispered as we both turned to face the witch who’d stopped running. “I guess we should see if thereisa later.”
“Get the kid out of here,” Sky muttered and moved forward elegantly, twirling the sword in her hand.
“A witch defending a fae,” the witch mused. “Interesting for you to forsake your own in favor of—that.”
“She is more my own than you ever will be,” Sky growled and lifted her head.
The witch lunged forward. But Sky was faster, swinging with a wicked force that shouldn’t have been possible for her slim size. Metal met hardened wood, sending a cracking sound wailing through the air.
The witch’s eyes went wide. “How?”
Sky’s only reply was barreling the black-hilted sword through the woman’s gaping mouth and through the back of her skull.
A tiny scream filled the air, and I turned to find Edith watching the scene. Quickly, I scooped her into my arms, dropped the lid, and ran. At her direction, we turned left down a side street and maneuvered into a narrow alley.
“Keep going!” the girl commanded as we rushed toward a dead end.
I shook my head, turning slowly to assess. Surely she was confused. Tall, thick stone walls corralled us, and the only exit was where we’d just come from.
“Keep going,” her voice pleaded.
“We can’t, there’s nowhere to go.”
“It’s right up there. The door to my house is there!” Edith pointed toward a nonexistent door.
“The door is just up there,” a cackling voice mocked behind me.
I whirled. And my stomach pitted. We were trapped.
